(Submitted Photo)
Lou Rugani has announced his departure from the radio station WLIP 1050 today after working at the station for 31 years. He also did a short stint from 1974 to 1975 where he went by “Lou Bruno.”
“All of the radio guys were using radio names back then, so did I.” Rugani said in a phone interview with KCE Monday night.
Rugani is the son of an Italian immigrant. His father, Silvio Rugani, came to the United States of America from Italy when he was 17. “My dad was a great man,” Rugani told KCE Editor Kevin Mathewson. ” You would have liked him and he would’ve liked you.” He worked at a copper mine in Michigan for seven years. He met his wife Katherine and the two married in 1922 and moved to Kenosha. Rugani was born 18 years later in 1940. Rugani has no brothers or sisters. Rugani grew up on the northwest side of Kenosha near Hobbes Park.
St. Mary’s Year Book Photo
He attended St. Mary’s High School on 39th Ave, graduating in 1958. Rugani took a job at AMC and worked for 10 years. “It paid well, but the job monotonous and it was hot.” Rugani took a chance On January 2, 1969. He walked into WAXO radio station on 67th St just East of Green Bay road. He asked loudly “You need any announcers?” “Hell ya,” the radio station manager Darrell Gorr replied. “When can you start?” To which Rugani replied, “tomorrow.” And that he did. On January 3, 1969 Rugani began his career in radio broadcast. He started with vinyl records and later, tapes, cd’s and finally, digital files. The station liked Rugani’s voice that was the quintessential voice for radio. Rugani played ez-listening and popular hits. A station out of Zion, IL bought the station and the new bosses put Rugani on nights. “It was very lonesome and boring,” said Rugani.
Rugani went to work in radio all over the area – WLUV in Rockford, WEXI Stereo Excitement in Chicago, WSTK in Woodstock, IL and finally, 1050 WLIP. He started in 1992 and started the “Big Band Sow.” He then coined the phrase and program, “Music of the Stars.”
(Submitted Photo)
Rugani was always known for ending each show with “please keep your dreams alive.” The day after Labor Day in 2007, Rugani started the show that he hosted until today at about 10:30 am- “Remembering Kenosha.” It was quite popular with Kenosha listeners. The phone rang non-stop with people calling in to reminisce about the good ole days. Rugani then started a Sunday show, “Music of The Stars.”
Rugani was a little upset Monday night, because he believes all of his archived videos and research had been wiped clean from WLIP servers. We reached out to station manager Carl Wertzler and he didn’t immediately respond.
Today on the air, was very different than most days. Many called called in and were in disbelief that Rugani was no longer working for WLIP. “Today will be a day that will live in infamy for WLIP. I’m so stunned by this shake-up said one caller.” Many others echoed the sentiment.
“I want to thank all my listeners from the bottom of my heart, not only for calling in today with your kind words, but the many Facebook posts and emails I received. My listeners contributed greatly to my show every day. I really enjoyed helping folks get in the radio and broadcasting business, but it isn’t for everyone.”
When asked if he will retire, Rugani’s answer was concise – “I’m a broadcaster and that’s what I do. The world is wide open. I’ll retire when I die.”
79 Responses
Very sad news for the community and me, too. Lou and I worked together at WAXO. In later years Lou was a tireless advocate for many causes and his radio programs served the community well. This is not just a great loss for Lou but the Kenosha community as well.
In a way I feel that this is another erosion of the Kenosha community. WLIP and what was once WAXO left town long ago. The Kenosha News is a shell of what it once was. “Kenosha Memorial Hospital” is no longer a full-service hospital. St. Catherine’s moved to Pleasant Prairie. Many stores have closed much of the city is a “grocery desert.” Change, of course, happens but it isn’t always for the best.
Hopefully you will be the next dinosaur to be booted.
Sit on your bench and lie to people.
Was in your courtroom one time as EVERY person, even single mothers that didnt have much money were fined for petty traffic offenses. And then you said , “it isnt about the money.”
Except it WAS about the money as every person left with a fine.
What a lying POS you are.
Part of the PP political machine that dumps on the taxpayer. GO AWAY!
I agree. Ginkowski sits on the bench and has his rants about everything under the sun. He stated he would cut the time officers spent in court, he tripled it. Bring back George.
Officers come to court when they have a subpoena from the prosecutor for trial. The new judge put the kibosh on illegal plea bargains in drunk driving cases and won’t OK deals to dump or reduce reckless driving.
Thank you for your comments and for the opportunity to respond.
It sounds as if you were in the courtroom for initial appearances. This is the first court appearance in a case at which time I explain to people the process and the law which includes safeguards for people who are unable to pay court obligations.
First, though, at the beginning of every court session I spend about six minutes going through the process and defendant rights. One thing I always printout is that a citation is merely an accusation and that a defendant has an absolute right to contest it. They can do so in many ways, including by mail so that they can skip that court appearance. We also accept not guilty pleas online or by Email which goes beyond what the statute requires. I also advise people that if they are unsure of what to do that they should plead not guilty. The following information is also provided on the court website:
If I plead “not guilty what happens?
You will receive a notice of a pretrial conference where you and the village prosecutor will meet to discuss your case. Make sure you bring any photographs, diagrams, witnesses, etc., that might help to your pretrial conference. If your case is not resolved then it will be scheduled for a trial. You have an absolute right to plead “not guilty” and nobody will force you to plead “guilty” or “no contest” to a citation.
The only time that I am imposing a sentence — which is a monetary penalty in municipal court — is if someone pleads guilty or no contest to a citation or they are found guilty at a trial. If you were in court for initial appearances and people came away owing court obligations it is because they they admitted guilt or entered a plea of no contest. At every initial appearance people are advised that if they cannot afford to pay a citation that should let us know so that we may offer alternatives to help them. This is a three-step process. First, the law places the burden is on a defendant to raise inability to pay although I tell people that if they cannot do so that they should come back and see us. Second, if inability to pay is an issue, then I must investigate it. Sometimes this means a formal hearing but often it’s a letter or E-mail. Third, if true, then we make accommodations that can include reducing the amount owed, giving additional time to pay or installment payments or offering a community service work alternative to payment. The constitution and state law requires this but the burden is on defendants to ask for relief. (I should also note that in every case I tell people that if they have questions to please feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer them.)
Further, if it is contemplated that someone will be incarcerated because they failed to comply with their sentence, I am required to hold a hearing and give them a chance to be heard before the commitment (warrant) is issued. They are sent a notice for this hearing. And, even if I order a commitment, we have a work crew alternative to incarceration in Kenosha County where people perform supervised community service instead of sitting in jail.
Municipal courts are a community-based alternative to the criminal justice system. Other than for contempt and willful refusal to pay court obligations, we cannot imprison anyone and anyone convicted in a municipal court does not have a criminal record. In addition to not having a criminal record, being convicted in municipal court is LESS expensive. For example, a basic speeding ticket is $98.80 in municipal court vs. $175.30 in circuit court because municipal court costs are in every case $76.50 less than in circuit court. Frankly, I would agree with anyone that this is discriminatory. If, for example, you received that ticket from a state trooper or deputy sheriff your case will be sent to circuit court and it will be more expensive for the same violation.
You mentioned that “every person left with a fine.” This is not entirely accurate. People who entered not guilty pleas were given the date and time of a pretrial conference with the prosecutor to discuss resolving their case and, if not resolved, then it will be tried at a later date. Also, people are entitled to at least one continuance if they ask for it. So not “every person left with a fine.” But most people will wind up owing court obligations. And in addition to my explaining in court the process to ask for relief if unable to pay every person who leaves owing court obligations is given a written explanation of this as well.
As I explain at initial appearances, the word “fine” in Wisconsin law is reserved for criminal cases. In municipal court the word is “forfeiture” which in essence is a monetary penalty for misbehavior.
You are correct that most offenses in municipal courts are “petty” and that’s precisely why we exist as a community-based alternative to the criminal and juvenile justice systems. Most of the people who appear before me are good people who made a mistake. Having this community-based alternative spares people like that from having the stigma and disabilities associated with a criminal prosecution and having a criminal record. It also conserves increasingly scarce district attorney, public defender, circuit court and correctional resources for the cases and defendants who need them by diverting less serious cases.
You mentioned dumping on taxpayers. Unlike circuit courts, municipal courts do not receive a dime from the state. (In fact, we send a portion of every forfeiture collected to the state.) While municipal courts are locally funded Wisconsin law says that forfeitures may not be imposed as a means of raising municipal revenue in lieu of taxation but may cover the cost of enforcement as well as provide punishment for misconduct. Unlike circuit courts and the criminal and juvenile justice systems, municipal courts are essentially self-sufficient which means that the municipal courts are taxpayer friendly in that court obligations paid by defendants cover the cost. As a lifelong conservative I believe that offenders, not taxpayers, should be the ones held accountable. To level the playing field for those unable or less able to pay options, including community service, are provided and, for juveniles, community service work is the primary sentence in most cases because I don’t think kids from less affluent families should be treated more harshly or that those from more affluent ones suffer no meaningful consequences for breaking the law.
When I took office in 2013 I instituted several reforms to make our court more user friendly, including providing at least one evening session per month for people who can’t take time off during the day. We also hear most juvenile cases at night when parents are more likely to be able to attend and, quite frankly, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to yank a kid out of school during the day to come to court for truancy. And long before Covid we offered audiovisual court appearances. When Covid came along I started “E-court” which allows people to handle most court matters online without having to come to court at all unless it’s a mandatory appearance case (usually juvenile matters and impaired driving). “E-court” was rolled out as a user-friendly option that hopefully will be a model for other communities. Here are the online options we give people:
– I want to plead not guilty to my citation.
– I want to plead guilty or no contest to my citation. (You’ll be able to explain mitigating circumstances.)
– I want to pay my citation.
– I want to ask for more time to pay my citation.
– I want to reschedule my court appearance.
– I missed my court date and want to reopen my case.
– I want the court to dismiss my citation for no proof of insurance or failure to show my driver’s license to the officer because I had insurance and a valid driver’s license.
Our website also gives people the option to ask for a virtual appearance if the above checklist doesn’t fit their situation.
To help those people who are financially strapped I helped the LCA Outreach Center set up a drivers license restoration project which also includes helping people come to any of the municipal courts in our county to ask for relief in paying outstanding court obligations.
Municipal courts are a separate and coequal branch of the municipal government. We are not part of the “political machine” nor are we a “rubber stamp” for police or anyone else. There are many times when people have been acquitted at trial or charges dismissed or amended. We are in the “justice business.” But justice also means accountability for those who broke the law. Accountability doesn’t mean that someone less able to pay gets off scot free. This would result in inverse discrimination if that was the case. As the United States Supreme Court stated in Bearden v. Georgia, a 1983 case: ““A defendant’s poverty in no way immunizes him from punishment.” The Bearden court went on to say:
“For example, the sentencing court could extend the time for making payments, or reduce the fine, or direct that the [defendant] perform some form of labor or public service in lieu of the fine.” This is precisely what we do.
Long before the United States Supreme Court said that the Wisconsin Supreme Court spoke. In State ex rel. Pedersen v. Blessinger, a 1972 case from Racine County, the Wisconsin Supreme Court said that courts, particularly traffic courts, are “not collection agencies” and that revenue production is not a legitimate basis for imposing a fine but also that the burden is on defendants to prove inability to pay.
I appreciate the opportunity to provide you and others with this information and invite you to visit the court and to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns. We warmly welcome visitors. The court belongs to the people and I am honored to have been elected to preside over your court. Also, if you have a school, church or community group and you’d like me to come and speak about the court, please contact me and we’ll work on setting something up.
shut up dick
How many other public officials take the time to answer criticism directly? Maybe more should.
Steinbrink will name a road after Dick.
you are showing your TRUE colors, toolboy.
When I was a younger police officer, I respected Dick, who worked in the District Attorneys Office. Over the years, I saw that he became just another part of the corrupt local government. Dick, you testified in support of DA Bob Zaph when he was facing ethics charges for concealing the Officer Baars evidence planting case. You are part of the reason why things are so messed up in this town. Now, you are a PP mini court judge. A perfect job for a tool like you.
As I believe in transparency I will answer this question because there is some misinformation.
I was under subpoena to testify at the Zapf hearing. I testified accurately that (1) it was his policy to instruct his prosecutors to be proactive in compliance with discovery demands and that (2) I could not say that I would have done the same had I still been there. This was in response to the questions I was asked at the hearing by the prosecutor and defense counsel. I would have turned over the Baars information promptly unless there was an active investigation of Baars where a delay would be needed so as not to compromise the inquiry. In that instance I would have asked for an adjournment to allow this. That’s the proper thing to do.
The “police officer” who mentions the Zapf case forgot to mention that a unanimous Wisconsin Supreme Court exonerated him. Unanimous. When was the last time anyone heard of this Wisconsin Supreme Court being unanimous? It does seem that KPD wasn’t entirely up front about Baars who seems to have been a self-aggrandizing wannabe here or something. Good riddance to him.
Ginkowski….you are an asshole to the highest degree. You sucked as a DA, too.
Wow. This was a thread about a good man who lost his job after decades of service to the community that got hijacked by a couple of people making personal attacks against someone else. At the least it’s very disrespectful to Mr. Rugani. If you have a beef with someone else, about something else, take it outside.
Lol replying with 8 paragraphs to anonymous people on the internet ?
Why are you hijacking a thread about Lou Rugani?
BECAUSE HE IS A BIG MOUTH.
He should be more like Schroeder.. quiet, unbiased
Public schools has deprived people of knowledge and more. How many people even know their traffic tickets are all dependent on the misrepresentations of who they are. Do they fit the description of the legal definition of “Driver” or as having or not having a “Driver License”? People don’t know, and BAR Associates conceal, the difference between a person who is “Traveling” in their private, non-commercial car, per their Right to Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness under the Fifth Amendment, vs “Driving” or “Operating a Motor Vehicle”. See 26 USC 7701(o)(5): “Driver License is for Trade, Commerce; 18 USC 31(6): Motor Vehicle (10) used for Commercial purposes. see also Miranda v Arizona; Chicago Motor Coach v Chicago,…
Lou was a class act.
The US will see the First woman President 2024
The Question before the new Judiciary is whether they will continue recognizing that Human Rights come from God or will the Deep Administrative STATE force people to violate their conscience?
Carl is a geniuses, right?! Took the station out of Kenosha and moved it to Illinois, for government handouts. Kenosha is, and never was a priority, except when Lou was on the air. Now y’all are stuck with Tim the landscaping golf guru….. Yeah… That’s live and local.
Good luck, Lou, and hope you get your materials back..
sure, carl is a bad GM, but this only RADIO. the best candidates ran from that field years ago. folks like lou only did what he did for those decades because he IS a broadcaster; first, last, and always. he is what made radio GREAT.
the only folks left in radio (besides the few like lou), are THE reasons why radio is terrible today. ipods didn’t kill radio, GM’s like carl did.
finally, an observation. carl needs a better toupee. there, i said it.
hey now.. Tim’s an expert in all of sports… just listen, he’ll tell ya in his condescending diatribe…
I’d listen but… I have to watch paint dry. No thanks… I’ll pass….. Buttered popcorn…
Louis Rugani…..great voice and great person. Hopefully we will be hearing his voice on-air as soon as possible.
Rugani was the only saving grace to WLIP which now us a totally crap radio station.
Lou here; thank you *all* for your friendship.
The MUSIC OF THE STARS is back, now over WRJN 1400 AM , 98.1 and 99.9 FM stereo, and worldwide.
Lou try to see if you can work at wgtd in Kenosha
To listen to Lou Rugani is to listen to a truly great talent. You can tell by his superb delivery, cadence, and timing, that there is a background in music.
A master at his craft.
He made the rest of WLIP broadcasters look like infantile hacks.
Hopefully his fine show, inimitable voice and formidable talents will be picked up elsewhere.
I can’t believe they are letting such quality go.
He was the best voice on WLIP .. you have the other loud mouth on the morning show liberal boot kicker ..
Oh yes…you must mean the world renowned novelist, artist, and yes, liberal boot licker who hosts the most boring morning show.
Lenny, a self-absorbed POS
Lou, we’ve known you for decades and are proud to call you
our friend !
My wife Sue ( Tait ) & her brother Tom we’re involved in the Queens men
drum & bugle Corp in the 1960’s. Lou was the ” Leader of the Band ” check out Dan Fogelberg’s song. He helped these young people so much as Lou has the community.
Kenosha will miss him on the air so much !!!
Lou, we support you 100 % in your next endeavor.
Love you, Sue, Michael & Jeff Schenning
Was there a big blowout during his show yesterday? The station seems to be getting more and more de Kenoshafied, every time I listen to it.
But they keep pushing that “Live and Local” line of BS.
Lou was a true professional in every way.
Not like that big gas bag from 8-Noon.
Was very disappointed to hear that news about Lou leaving WLIP. His show focused on local Kenosha!!! Let’s hope the 8 – Noon guy will start stepping up his show – how many times can you play the “Movie Game” Good luck Lou, will look for you down the dial.
is there anything on radio worse than the movie game?
Yep, Lennies poll questions.
Lenney is a pole
Lou, I can commiserate with you regarding the taking of the archive materials, YOUR archive materials.
It is your intellectual property for sure, and tho it is on their equipment, there is something wrong about
stealing one’s words, keeping them hostage and not letting anyone know that a decision was being made to delete without proper notification and perhaps a hearing. I hope you sue for the material just to force them to have to do all the things that they should have done at the onset and to have to work at reparations. Wondering out loud if Diane Giles had the same thing happen to her with the Kenosha News, tho in her case, she had to prep before the print and might actually have her words in her own archive.. yours, being audio and constructed on air with no previous chance to record is a bit different and may in fact work to your favor…
I commiserate a bit too in that facebook has basically stolen my own material, photos and whatevers by failing to propelty identify source(which they did at the onset of facebook status entries), removed names and removed identifiers.. theft by liberal, wealthy brats… I must however fall back on the realization that whatever is free is suspect and whatever one puts to the internet is basically no longer yours.. whether it is words, imagery or sound…
I cant quite say the same regarding Valentine Snippets (find that beacon on facebook) which points to the Kenosha library and affiliate Salem Community library where instead of a SEARCH THE DATA BASE TOOL that swiftly searches a full, deep database, decided to make small booklets 900+ of them subject to an archaic catalog system that seldom produces the same results, forces the same search over and over on similarly constructed booklets and basically hides Valentine Snippets from those of the area who might benefit from all the material that was contributed by many users over 20 years… And then too, yearbooks from the historical society, scanned by moi and added as a booklet that was searchable has now magically become part of a yearbook project with nary a Valentine SNippet or society source name attached to it.. and that.. is our local/regional library acting like the wealthy(our tax dollars at work(??))liberal brats who pretend to be unbiased.. PUHLEASE…. (yes Kreuser knew my point of view on this and about the wildly varying results to queries as well as the illegal structure of the participants in the Community Library system, so maybe CoExec Kerkman might look into her library system and how it does not follow state statute regarding representation by population. I am very glad tho that I did digitize all the original material and as i continue to produce more from those material I have at hand, I will have a nice package to give to a location other than the Kenosha Library system. Yes, I will call out Jim Kreuser, Barb Brattin and Doug Baker whether they are currently actively involved or not!
I hope you get your material back. I hope that we can hear those many many man contributions once again as they were personal interviews and are most definitely candidates for the Wisconsin State Historical Society collection of reminiscences of those who experienced it! I hope when you sue, that you add some $$$$ to the suit so that you can buy the equipment that you need to process, store, replicate and present as well as hire the people needed to do the work to make it all available to us. I hope you win.
Yes, I commiserate.Yes, I stand with you.Valentine Snippets
example. visit https://buffaloah.com/ ; slide to a search box. enter in canal (which i know will produce results) and click go. NOTICE that it searched almost 700 locations on the database and produced the resulst for the researcher – in seconds and drilled down into the document to produce the results. Kenosha Library could have done this – didnt. SMH
VALENTINE SNIPPETS
https://www.oclc.org/en/contentdm.html for use on anything already digitized!
https://www.oclc.org/en/contentdm.html for use with digital material
Sir Lou Rugani what a true treasure it was to listen to you on air. I have only know you a short while but each moment I share with you is a moment down memory lane. There are not enough people who can give you historical information at the drop of the hat ( this doesn’t limit itself to music or Kenosha history).
Such a very sad sad day to see Kenosha losing access to this wonderful gift.
SHAME ON YOU WLIP MGMT!
Lou.. this door was closed but don’t look back Sir, better things to come.
How many people in total were let go from the 4 stations that operate from Gurnee Mills?
The following on-air personalities are no longer with Kenosha’s Alpha Media stations as part of a “Reduction in Force” on Monday 3/6/23.
Longtime Wake-Up Kenosha Morning show host Bill Lawrence of AM1050 WLIP.
Lou Rugani, Host of Music of the Stars and Remembering Kenosha AM1050 WLIP
Stino Cerigliano, Morning Show Co-Host 95 WIIL Rock and K-Town Reports on AM1050 WLIP
sounds like WGTD should be grabbing a bnch of people and truly acting like a PUBLIC SERVICE of the people
I’m glad that Stino Cerigliano is gone. She sounded like a tired old worn out bar fly.
I agree. Her voice is hideous. She never should have been working in radio in the first place.
I always said stino reminded me of marge’s sisters on the simpsons who smoked. her voice is so gross. but not as gross as her only fans content.
At one time WLIP employed four news people. Full-time. And it’s been going downhill ever since.
Me and my mom listened to music of the stars…that’s where I learned to love all the music of days gone by…beautiful memories?….hope u come back on another station. wlip you Suck!
When I moved to Kenosha 4 years ago, I was advised to listen to WLIP for the “live and local” news. I enjoyed Lou’s encyclopedic knowledge of Kenosha history. I think the wrong person retired; get rid of that hack Lenny Palmer and his bigoted, racist, misogynistic views. Sham of a radio station.
Few, if any communities in this country have a local commentator the caliber of Lou Rugani. Both of his programs brought vital, American history, entertainment and local/national history that was interesting and informative. Lou did so in a format that honored his listeners as represented by his cordial interchange with the citizens of southeastern Wisconsin and northeastern Illinois. Also from callers all over the U.S. He will be sorely missed. Some may not know of his involvement in musical entertainment that did not stop with local drum corps. I worked with Lou with the Pat Crawford Big Band where he sang and MC’d. He also landed me a few gigs working with him at the worlds’ oldest jazz club, The Green Mill in Chicago, where he had a long time gig as an MC for an awesome format of old-time radio programs with the Swing Shift Orchestra. At times he would play with and sing on occasion with the band. He has been a bright spot in an extended area for some time. I feel WLIP has made a grave error, as there is only a few entertaining spots left on that station. Two are weekly only and one is all night. One can only hope Lou may continue in some way. Thank you, Lou for everything!
Kevin,
Please follow up with Lou and keep us informed where to hear him next. His wisdom, history and humor will be missed until he is heard from again. If he does a live show somewhere, please tell us when and where.
Hey Lou,
Good Luck in the future… we always loved hearing about the history of Kenosha… That only you know so intimately. I hope you get your content back… that’s a pretty nasty thank you after so many years of hard work for the station. Won’t be turing them on our radios ever again, that’s for sure.
Thanks again,
Bill
they way they treated lou is only the tip of the iceberg. for the past 20 years, they’ve spit on all their true talents. lou & bill were just the latest casualties. you should’ve seen how they treated irene bure nelson.
absolutely despicable folks.
Fyi the new cars are now being sold with NO AM radio service only FM and other services
The EV’s electronics make AM unlistenable.
For me, it was some of the programming that made AM unlistenable.
I heard that some ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) cars will be manufactured without AM radios too.
Some EV’s are able to have AM radios with no audio or reception problems.
I wanted to say that I listened to Lou Rugani’s Remembering Kenosha program quite often these last several years. Lou is truly an encyclopedia on all things Kenosha. I met him a couple of years ago and we discussed a family member whom he remembered from 60 plus years ago. How many people can say that they know a walking encyclopedia ? I can and that person is Lou. I will miss his program. It’s sad to see that a true living and breathing history book on Kenosha no longer on the air. I wish you success in whatever you do Lou as you will be missed on the radio.
I sure wish we could still listen to Lou’s archives. I have been going back and listening to the old shows as well as tuning into his new shows. I also loved his Sunday show, especially at the holidays.
Does anyone else find it odd they terminate both the oldest person and a person with disabilities? What a rotten thing for the WLIP owners to do.
Good luck Lou in everything you do in the future. I hope you find a landing spot where we can listen to you again.
Lou Rugani I miss both your shows. My radio was always tuned in to 1050 am. Alpha Media made a huge cut on two wonderful radio host’s including Bill Lawrence. Lou Rugani host The Music of the Stars & Remembering Kenosha we’re the most popular and influential programs . This is a big case of discrimination & other things some people lied about pertaining to him & making in jokes about his sponsors & about Lou Rugani. Those employees have to live with themselves knowing what they did. As far as Karl the boss & John Perry program director they are not to be trusted. I’m so sorry this took place neither Bill Lawrence or Lou Rugani had an opportunity to say Goodbye to their listeners. They didn’t retire both Lou Rugani & Bill were terminated for no reason.
I agree with a lot of the comments. This page is for termination of two people on am not politics. Wlip 1050 am has already lost an abundance of listeners.
I have nothing good to say about the current shows.
Karl Wertzler is a clown who blew up WKRS in Waukegan. He killed the only full time Talk and News station in Lake County, located in the county seat of Lake County, and flipped it to Spanish Sports Talk. What a joke Alpha Media / Digity / Next Media are! Karl needs to be shown the door.
Alpha Media received free government handouts to pay for the move to the outlet mall Gurnee Mills. Alpha Media promised to hold 30 special events (concerts) per year inside the outlet mall, but so far there has not been any that I am aware of.
Lou will be greatly missed. Hard to rationalize letting him and Bill Lawrence go while keeping the windbag in the mud morning and the tax guy who is constantly laughing at his own jokes. Sad.?
Thank you, Kevin, for this insightful and much-needed website! And huge thanks to all you past listeners and KENOSHA COUNTY EYE readers for your kind words. Here’s what I posted on my MUSIC OF THE STARS and REMEMBERING KENOSHA Facebook pages:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With my deepest regrets, I must announce that the 32-year run of the MUSIC OF THE STARS has ended, at least on WLIP.
In the afternoon after the March 5th broadcast and again that evening I was asked by the WLIP content director to attend a 10:15 a.m. meeting in Gurnee, Illinois. The reasons weren’t specified, and my requests as to the nature of the meeting were ignored.
There I was told that I was immediately terminated and that yesterday’s Music Of The Stars would be my last. The explanation offered was “cutbacks”. I was allowed two minutes to speak, then was told to leave.
Outside, a Gurnee Police squad was waiting, and the friendly and seemingly-embarrassed officer indicated that he’d been summoned to “keep things peaceful”.
In checking my MUSIC OF THE STARS podcasts on the station website, they and also my REMEMBERING KENOSHA podcasts have vanished.
I sincerely thank all my listeners and sponsors over my 32-year broadcast career … and again, my personal gratitude to Mr. Ed Doody and Mr. Paul Kern who inspired the MUSIC OF THE STARS and honored me with the opportunity to create it. Thank you all once again … and keep your dreams alive.
WLIP has turned into a right-wing MAGA sewer!
Lou, you don’t need a radio station to broadcast from. You can setup an online podcast in the comfort of your own home.
AM radios days ended in the 1990’s. As a former radio guy, I’m amazed it hung on so long. Stations like WBBM and WTMJ along with WSCR keep it afloat. It should be an excellent choice for local news but no one really cares. Many other options-including the net. I live in the south and love to catch WBBM on a clear night. Sure, there’s Audacy , but over the air radio is where it’s at.
I listened to Lou and even called in a few times. I listened to Bill on the morning show and yes I did listen to Lenny too.
Radio jocks don’t make tons of money so I wonder how much actual saving occurred!
The management at Alpha Media needs to get their head examined.
Good riddance to Lou Rugani. He’s one of the most pompous persons I’ve ever met.
“Anonymous” may be right, in that
I don’t deal well with bad behavior.
Lou and Bill will be dearly missed by many listeners…two of the BEST rsdio personalities in the business! I, for one, won’t even bother listening to WLIP anymore, andf I;m sure I speak for many former listeners. WLIP lost a lot more than they gained by letting these two gentlemen go!
Great. Now get rid of the smarmy ultra liberal in the morning that thinks he is the smartest guy in the room. Why aren’t you guys promoting the new Markley, Van Camp & Robbins show that is on in place of Lou’ show? Neither Dan or Lenny have mentioned a single word about it. I’ll tell you why, because your lefties and you don’t like hearing what they have to say, just like a liberal. May I remind you and Lenny you work at WLIP (for now) and your job is to promote and stand behind your employer and their programming decisions. Please get rid of both of these losers and screen you calls better. Tired of hearing from the 90 old woman 5 times a day as well.
Congratulations to Lou on his new position starting at WRJN. It’s a darn shame however that Lou is going over to station that was just taken over by a Liberal broadcaster. That Liberal Talk format is not going to go anywhere. Terrible decision that the new owner blew up a nice music station on AM & FM and flipped it to Liberal Talk(((. Furthermore, many of the same ridiculous left wing talk shows can already be heard on AM 540 in Milwaukee. All of the sports teams are also already available to listen to on Milwaukee stations which come in just fine in Racine and Kenosha Counties. That new company Civic Media has been taking over stations all across Wisconsin. They must have alot of money to spend to support their lame political agenda.
Lou’s Music of the Stars was a unique show, no other place on the radio dial had or has music like that. I’ll now have to check out WRJN.
Lou here; thank you *all* for your friendship.
The MUSIC OF THE STARS is back, now over WRJN 1400 AM , 98.1 and 99.9 FM stereo, and worldwide.
Oh boy is this great!! Any other social media platform these comments would be deleted! 🤣 Hey Lou how is working with the great STUART J WADDLES?
Stu Wattles is great in every respect; a diligent news reporter and a trustworthy colleague. Thanks for asking!
HEY LOU!! U know what Ktown needs!!?? AN AQUARIUM—- A GREAT LAKES AQUARIUM
You just might be on to something there.
I can hear the lead story now:
“Kenosha announces the Dawn of Aquarium …”